Urdaneta – San Fernando – 120 km
Cycling with a cold was probably not the best, but favourable conditions made
riding easy. The road passed unusual roadside stalls, a few selling dried fish and
various fascinating produce. Ultimately, I found myself in San Fernando and at
the same hotel as on the previous visit.
San Fernando City – Manila - 76 km
The last leg of my Filipino journey was marred by slow-moving traffic and dusty
roadworks. Cycling into the city I somehow found myself in the middle of
Chinatown, midday on the last Saturday before Christmas. My word, what
chaos! It took ducking and diving through the hectic traffic to avoid the
countless Jeepneys and tricycles, but I thought I handled the madness like a
pro.
Manila
In Manila, the city was in a festive mood. The waterfront was packed with food
vendors, people strolled and biked along the promenade, and hawkers peddled
their wares.
Little was achieved in organising my trip to Taiwan, as both the bike shop and
the travel agents were closed on Sundays. But mercifully, one could upgrade
luggage to forty-five kilograms at a small fee - good news as flying with the
bike could be expensive.